Tales from the adventures of a scientist undertaking work in remote environments. Among the field campaigns Clare recalls are working in the frozen north in the 1990s (when the European Union sought to understand if there was also an ozone hole over the Arctic); studying emissions from forest fires in Australia and peat fires in Asia; and measuring greenhouse gases from a Murray river houseboat in the middle of a flooded forest. She also shares reflections on how scientific fieldwork impacts on other aspects of life.

Associate Professor Clare Murphy is the Director of the Centre for Atmospheric Chemistry at the University of Wollongong. She is a lecturer in chemical sciences and her research interests are in the changing composition of the atmosphere and the impacts on air quality and climate. When Associate Professor Clare Murphy joined UOW in 2009, her research involved solar remote sensing of atmospheric trace gases, with a focus on tropospheric pollution and the measurement and modelling of emissions to the atmosphere from agriculture and biomass burning. She completed my PhD in 2009 and started a permanent position as a lecturer in physical chemistry. She is now an associate professor and her research interests continue to be in the changing composition of our atmosphere and the impacts on air quality and climate.

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx